


Initiations

by pagerunner



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: F/M, Multi, Polymachina, post-episode 89
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-19
Updated: 2017-03-19
Packaged: 2018-10-07 17:26:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,491
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10365771
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pagerunner/pseuds/pagerunner
Summary: Tary's study of Vox Machina's portraits has led him to a few interesting questions. And possibly some misapprehensions. Vex and Percy, as it turns out, might not be the best ones to set him straight. Takes place some time after Pike and Tary's conversation in episode 89.





	

Taryon Darrington was a man on a mission.

He was a man of many missions, truth be told: an aspiring adventurer with a long list of goals, and a raft of challenges he intended to conquer. This particular venture, however, was…unique in its complexity. After a long and careful study of Doty’s flashcards of Vox Machina, just as the little gnome had demanded of him—well, maybe not _exactly_ for the reasons she’d meant, but considering the subject matter, could he be blamed?—Tary had found himself with a whole new set of questions. Questions about his compatriots, their relationships, their hobbies, their…

Well, there were many topics, but he certainly had questions.

It took time before he had the opportunity to voice any of them, but on an afternoon that afforded him the chance to speak with Vex and Percy both, he finally screwed up the courage to set forth and ask.

The pair was not, to his relief, actively engaged in anything as intimate as the flashcards had shown. It was mealtime, and they were eating and idly conversing, laughing together at some private joke. Vex was the first to see him approach. Her laughter notably trailed off when he did, and she leaned back in her chair away from Percy, “Oh. Tary," she said. "Why don’t you join us.”

It was impossible not to notice the sarcasm lacing her voice. Despite what they likely thought, he wasn’t entirely unobservant, and certainly was not unintelligent. But as he’d been reminded many a time, sometimes forcefully, showing a poor reaction to her tone would get him nowhere. _Confidence in all things,_ he thought, and brightened his smile. “Ah. Vex. I do have that right now, yes? So kind of you to invite me. I was hoping to speak with you both.”

Percy’s eyebrows lifted slightly. Vex’s expression didn’t change much. “And what would that be about?”

Tary sat close by and squared his shoulders. “Well. I suppose I should plunge right in. I’ve been thinking, since we’re all members now of this same little band, that I want to fully understand my role and responsibilities.”

“Go on.”

“What it comes down to is that I had a few questions after observing Vox Machina in action.” He took a breath. “And after studying your portraiture.”

“Ah,” said Percy, setting down his drink.

“I mean, one could learn a number of things from Doty’s drawings,” Tary went on, while Vex and Percy eyed each other. “I suppose I ought to be taking some tips about your fitness routines, for one, since you all have some impressive definition in those p…”

“What is your point exactly, Tary?” Vex interrupted. Tary decided to get right to it.

“There was one common physical characteristic I noticed. Along with everyone having scars, I mean, but those were idiosyncratic, and frankly a bit intimidating.”

Tary paused. It was true enough, to be fair; seeing the marks of so many battles, the evidence of deep and dire injury, had been concerning. But he was wandering away from the point. Tary collected himself again and continued.

“On your shoulders,” he said, gesturing to his own to indicate the positioning. “There was a mark I saw. A tattoo, perhaps? Or a…”

“Brand,” Percy said quietly. “It was a brand.”

“It _was?”_ Tary asked, while Vex gave Percy another look Tary couldn’t read. He made note, but chose not to remark on it. “Fascinating. Is that—do all of you have it, then? Because I could see it in some of the portraits, but in one or two you were turned the other way, or…well, frankly you were just kind of occupied.”

“We all have them, yes,” Vex said, while Percy made a badly stifled sound. “Did you mean to ask what it was?”

“Not to put too fine a point on it, yes. Is it your very own symbol? Do you get it if you’re part of Vox Machina? Is this something I should…” He braced himself, imagining the procedure. “Obtain?”

Vex’s eyes sparked. Percy, though, was the one to answer. “It’s not Vox Machina’s symbol, no. And honestly, it’s not up to us to decide. We were all initiated together, into…”

“A club of sorts,” Vex said. “In a _very_ secret ritual.”

“Ah.” Tary kept feeling his way around the topic. His imagination, already sparked by those drawings—and admittedly driven onto a very particular track by those drawings—was beginning to provide him with ideas. “Taking that into account, along with my other observations, and seeing that this is something you only share in private circumstances…”

“Yes?”

“Is this club of yours…intimate in nature?”

Percy’s eyes widened. So, after a moment, did Vex’s smile. “Why, Tary,” she said. “What a bold conclusion to draw.”

“Perhaps.” Remembering her own boldness in that drawing, he shifted in his chair. “I just saw a number of things pointing in the same direction. Doty captured so many of you in the same state, and there was something about it that struck me as, well, maybe even ritualistic…”

“Um,” Percy began, but Vex quickly waved him off.

“…and if this is part of how the group functions, it would behoove me to understand, and to pursue…a….well, pursue a line of inquiry about it, at the very least. Your friend Pike even encouraged me to ask. And so I’m asking.”

Vex listened raptly. When Percy began venturing his way into a reply, Vex spoke up louder, cutting Percy off. “I’m afraid we cannot divulge all of our society’s secrets unless you, too, are initiated,” she said, sounding suddenly imperious. “But I can say it’s a truly exclusive group, and your membership is contingent on your personal skill. You have to prove your ability to perform.”

Tary, who’d gasped at her suggestion, didn’t quite hear Percy’s sudden snicker. “Is that true?”

“Well, yes,” Percy said, after recovering his composure. “That’s literally accurate.”

“And there were certain…feats…that were required of us,” Vex went on. “Challenges, to be performed with assigned partners.”

His jaw dropped. “What sorts of challenges?”

Vex nudged Percy, silently prompting him. After a moment he spread his hands as if in surrender and said, “I suppose you could say it was about fulfilling our matron’s demands.”

“Also true,” Vex said, sounding smug. “She’s a fierce woman. Very particular tastes.”

Tary’s mind spun at the implications. “Your _matron?”_

“Vanessa,” Vex said, lingering over the name. “A tiefling woman. Very striking. As was one of the women who joined us in our trial, in fact.”

“That would be Zahra,” Percy put in.

“I loved her,” Vex said, almost wistfully. “ _So_ powerful.”

Sudden amusement colored Percy’s voice. “You do have an eye for the tiefling ladies, don’t you?”

“Oh, _you’re_ one to talk, Mr. I-still-get-private-messages-from-Lillith-every-year…”

“And just think, that’s only slightly more unwieldy than my actual name.”

“Wait, wait wait.” Tary waved his hands, trying to interject. “You’re telling me you were undergoing these…tests of prowess…with each other, and with others, and…who’s Lillith, now? _Do_ you have relationships with multiple people?”

“Oh, Tary,” Vex said, laughing softly. “Would it shock you if we did?”

“No! I mean…I was raised in a traditional household, with very particular ideas about proper partnerships and marriages and what’s allowed, but I’m a man of the world now, and I’ve seen things, and learned things, and certainly read about, well…other options.”

“It’s good to broaden your horizons,” Percy agreed, hiding his expression behind a sip of his drink.

“I think I’ve gone a long way toward broadening yours,” Vex said archly.

Percy lowered his tankard, about to retort, then lifted it again in acknowledgment. “Fair,” he said.

“So.” Tary rubbed his hands against his knees. “If one were to seek admission into this club of yours, where would one begin?”

This time Percy was the one to give Vex a significant look. She spread her hand in a “please, go on” gesture, and again he took the cue, smiling wryly as he did. “I think proper physical conditioning should be your first goal. It’s useful in so many respects, including the battles we’ll be facing, and it’s helpful in the…arena you’re thinking about.”

“Yes, yes, makes sense.” He waited hopefully. “And?”

Vex leaned closer, conspiratorially. “I haven’t meant to pry, but if I’m to advise you properly in this, I really must know. How experienced are you, Tary?”

He swallowed. “Well, I—“

“And I don’t want you to come up with some grandiose story like you did about your adventuring,” she added sternly. “I expect the truth this time.”

Tary felt a strange tingle of nerves at Vex’s tone. If that attitude indicated anything about her relationship with Percy, or for that matter how things might go with _him…_ “I might not have the same breadth of experience as you, I admit,” he told her, again saying more than he’d meant to. “But at the appropriate time, to ensure I was well versed in what I’d need to know for my eventual betrothed, my father did invest in a…”

“You can stop there, darling,” Vex said quickly. “I believe I have the idea.”

"It was more theoretical than practical, I must admit."

"Even so," she said. "It's…illustrative."

“All of this has been on my list,” Tary confessed. “Romances. Dalliances. Sexual…escapades.”

“Well, you can work your way up to the escapades,” Vex said lightly. “In the meantime, I believe you might be underprepared for Vanessa and her dungeon…”

“ _Dungeon,”_ he repeated in a whisper, unsure if that new rush of nerves was fear or anticipation. He missed entirely how Percy was covering his mouth, muffling his own response.

“But I have a few notions of what to do with you. What do you think, Percy dear—should we bring Grog into the discussion, see if he’d be willing to help Tary out?”

Percy’s eyes rounded. So did Tary’s. “I, um,” Tary began, remembering that portrait of Grog in all his glory. It was impossible not to imagine something…overwhelming. “If you mean to suggest that I…and he…”

Vex laughed. “Oh, that would _definitely_ be biting off more than you can chew.”

“That’s one way to put it,” Percy said _sotto voce_.

“But he’s familiar with all the best brothels. He could show you around, introduce you to a few of those _other options_ you were talking about."

"It’s a place to begin," Percy agreed.

Vex’s head tilted as she studied Tary. “Besides, I’m sure he could give you some pointers. The ladies Grog sees always seem so impressed with him.”

“I…can imagine why.”

“So just look at the whole thing as educational. And as a bonding experience.” Vex winked at him. “Or maybe even a bondage experience, who knows.”

He was sure that time that he heard Percy murmur “dear gods” before taking another long gulp of his ale.

“Anyway, my dear, I’ll leave that choice up to you. But you _did_ come to us for advice, and I hope you understand I’m trying to keep your best interests in mind.” Her eyebrow arched again. “And you’ll have to learn to place your trust in us, Tary. That’s part of the arrangement, too.”

“The arrangement. Yes.” He thought a moment, then ventured, “You do have a hierarchy, then?”

“I…well, yes, you could say that.”

“And although Antlers—I’m sorry, Keyleth—seems to be the overall leader of the group, I’m assuming from what I’ve seen that in this matter at least, _you_ are the one in charge?”

Percy looked as if he intended to say something, but Vex cut in first with, “You could definitely say that.”

“All right. Is that matron you mentioned still the ultimate authority, however?”

Vex began to make what sounded like an emphatic denial when Percy smoothly stepped in. “Once you pass muster with Vanessa, you’re turned out into the world to do as you will. We’ve arranged things amongst ourselves as we like. So truly, the only ones you have to answer to are us.”

Vex’s eyes glittered. “Oh, Percy. Well said.”

“I hoped you’d think so.”

Tary watched the way they smiled at each other, then made himself stand. He did hope he wasn’t showing any untoward reactions to any of this, especially since he wasn’t used to discussing sexual matters so openly. But… _Confidence in all things,_ he reminded himself. _In_ all _things._

“I’ll entrust you to have that discussion, then,” he said. “And after you do, I look forward to speaking with Grog about our…outing. And seeing what might come after.”

“Certainly,” Vex said. A smile teased at her lips. “You’re learning well, Tary.”

On impulse, he echoed Percy’s phrasing and said, “I’m pleased you think so,” as he bowed his head. A little obeisance now, he reasoned, would only make his later command of the situation—because he had no doubt he’d accomplish it—more satisfying.

 _And just think of what I’ll be able to tell Doty then,_ he thought, while he turned and strode off with the beginnings of a smile.

—

“Oh, gods,” Vex breathed once she and Percy had retreated to their room. Now that they were safely out of Tary’s earshot, she couldn’t stop laughing. “I can’t believe we just pulled that off.”

“You are _terrible,”_ Percy replied. “Passing off the Slayer’s Take as some sort of sex club? Just terrible.”

“Oh, come now. You love it when I’m terrible.”

“That’s true,” Percy said, sounding suspiciously amused. “I’d just love to know how he got that impression in the first place.”

“One-track mind,” she said airily, tugging Percy with her onto the bed. “Just like most men.”

“I’m…choosing not to take offense at that.”

“And I suppose our portrait was sufficiently inspiring.”

“Which is flattering. In a dreadful sort of way.”

Vex poked his shoulder. “Whatever conclusions he felt compelled to draw were his own doing. Neither of us actually lied to him. Not one bit.”

“I was following your lead on that, yes.”

“I noticed.” She smirked. “You do that so well.”

Percy levered himself a bit above her. “I’ll take the compliment,” he told her, “but I hope you aren’t going to give everyone the impression that that’s _all_ I do.”

Vex kept on smirking. She’d wondered if he was going to rise to that. She wasn’t at all displeased that he had. “If that’s the case, I think that’s _your_ challenge to conquer.”

“Oh, is it?”

“Most definitely.” She wriggled suggestively beneath him. “Prove your skills against mine. Earn your place on top. I’ll even see if I can have Doty record your glorious victory if you can pull it off.”

“I think we can skip that part.” Percy chuckled quietly as he bent closer. “But still…challenge accepted.”

“I hoped you’d say that,” said Vex, and rose to meet him as he set to work.

**Author's Note:**

> I probably owe a nod to a couple of sabinelagrande's stories for the format here. The tag at the end was impossible to resist. :)


End file.
